by Robert Boren
“I’ll keep an eye out for them. Heading to I-70?”
“Yep, that’s what General Walker suggested.”
“Good, don’t tell me exactly where you are.”
“Understand,” Frank said. “Hey, the Doc get away?”
“I don’t know. I hope so. They hit the Hospital. I was lucky to get Terry out of there in time.”
“Bastards,” Frank said.
“Well, I’d better get off the phone. Heading into the switchbacks.”
“Alright, Sheriff. Take care of yourself.”
“You too, Frank.”
Frank put his phone back in his pocket, and looked over at Jane.
“That was the Sheriff,” Frank said.
“So I gathered. He alright?”
“Yes, he’s on the road in his motorhome, heading this way. The town took a real beating.”
“What did he say about the Doc?”
“He doesn’t know what happened to him, but the hospital got hit pretty badly, from the sound of it.”
“He doesn’t know what happened at the RV Park, I suspect.”
“No, he didn’t get back over there before he had to leave.”
“He’s going to try to hook back up with us, I hope.”
“Yes,” Frank said, “and I’ll be damn glad to see him.”
“Me too. Want me to drive for a while?” asked Jane.
“I’m good for now. Maybe when we get onto I-70. We still have a lot of daylight left, at least. Feels later than 2:30.”
“Wonder if Earl and Jackson are catching up to us?”
“Good question,” Frank said. “The Sheriff saw Jackson’s Class C on the side of the road.”
“There’s Caineville,” Jane said, pointing ahead. There were a few buildings there. The sign said two miles.
“Must be a pretty small town,” Frank said. “I don’t even see a gas station.”
“Yeah, I’m only seeing one motel and a small store in town, but there are a couple of RV parks nearby. Hanksville is bigger…..we could gas up there if we need to.”
The caravan blew by Caineville and continued on desolate route 24.
“I should call Jerry and let him know I heard from the Sheriff,” Frank said, pulling his phone out of his pocket.
“Hey, Frank, what’s up?”
“I just heard from the Sheriff.”
“Good. How’s he doing? Is he still in town?”
“No, he had to split. He’s in his RV heading in the same direction as we are. I suspect we’ll see him tomorrow.”
“Excellent. I was getting kind of attached to that old fart.”
“You and me both.”
“I was just about to call you, Frank.”
“About what?”
“I got a call from Jackson. Earl needed some diesel, so they stopped in Boulder.”
“Uh oh, hope there aren’t still problems there.”
“He called me from the gas station, and it looked OK to him. I told him about what happened as we drove through there.”
“How long ago was that?”
“Ten minutes ago.”
“I hope they didn’t get carjacked there,” Frank said. “This worries me a little bit.”
“I know, me too. I told them to watch themselves. Those two are pretty good, though. It wouldn’t be easy to take them.”
“True. Maybe you ought to call them back in a bit and make sure they made it out of there alright.”
“I was thinking the same thing. I’ll give them about twenty minutes, though. Takes a while to fill a big diesel rig like that.”
“Okay.”
“How far do you think we’re going today?”
“Good question. Wonder if we can make it all the way into Colorado?”
“Maybe, if I-70 is in good shape. I don’t know much about this road we’re on. Hopefully there are no more slow parts.”
“Jane checked it out on her phone…she said it looks fairly straight all the way to I-70.”
“Then we may be in good shape. Some of us will probably have to stop in Hanksville to fuel up.”
“I know, I was thinking the same thing. Hope nobody was counting on fuel in Caineville.”
Jerry laughed.
“Yeah, the only thing you might be able to fuel up in that town is a mule.”
“Pretty much,” Frank said. “I’ll get off the line. Let me know if you have a problem raising Jackson and Earl.”
“Will do,” Jerry said. “Later.”
Frank put his phone back in his pocket.
“He heard from Jackson?” Jane asked.
“Yep. They were fueling up about ten minutes ago.”
“Not in Boulder, I hope.”
“’Fraid so,” Frank said. “I know, I’m worried about them too. You heard me ask Jerry to call me back.”
“Yes,” Jane said. “I don’t have a good feeling about this.”
“Me neither.”
They rode along quietly for a while. Lucy got out of her bed and looked up at Jane.
“Alright, girl, come on up.”
Lucy jumped up on Jane’s lap and sat down, looking up at her with her sad eyes.
“We are going to need to stop at Hanksville for at least a few minutes, even if we don’t need to fuel up. Miss Lucy is going to need a break.”
“I don’t see a problem with that. How much longer?”
“It’s getting close. My GPS says about fifteen more minutes.”
“Good,” Frank said. “We are still on three quarters of a tank, but it might not be a bad idea to top it off if the others are going to stop for a few minutes.”
Frank’s phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and answered it.
“Frank?”
“Yeah.”
“I can’t raise Jackson or Earl. Tried them both.”
“Oh, shit,” Frank said. He looked over at Jane.
Chapter 06 – Road Action
“You can’t raise either one of them?” Frank asked
“Nope,” Jerry said. “Tried both Earl and Jackson’s cell phones.”
“You need to stop in Hanksville?”
“Yeah, need to fuel up.”
“I’ll top off too, and we need to take the dog out. Let’s talk when we get there.”
“Alight, Frank. Talk to you then.”
Frank put his phone back into his pocket.
“They’re stopping for fuel, I take it?” Jane asked.
“Yes. You heard most of the conversation.”
“So what do we do?”
“I don’t know yet,” Frank said. “My gut tells me that we get over the border into Colorado, get a camp set up, and then bring the toad back here and look for them.”
“You sure that’s a good idea?”
“No, but we have to protect our own,” Frank said. “I think either one of them would do that for us.”
“Why don’t you try to get the Sheriff again when we get to Hanksville?” He might have seen something. He’s coming up the same way.”
“Good idea,” Frank said.
“I’ll turn on the radio and see if I can get a local station. It would be nice to know if things are going crazy in Hanksville.” She turned on the radio and hit the seek button.
“I’m going to call the Sheriff now. No reason to wait,” Frank said. He pulled his phone out again and dialed the number.
“Sheriff?”
“Hi, Frank, what’s up?”
“How are you doing?”
“Pretty good so far. Got past the switchbacks a few minutes ago. The road is damn near empty. I’m surprised. I thought there would be a lot of people trying to get the heck out of southern Utah.”
“Have you seen Earl’s pusher?”
“Nope, haven’t seen any other motor homes.”
“Shoot,” Frank said.
“What’s wrong?”
“They called Jerry when they were in Boulder getting fueled up. Jerry tried to call them a little later. He can’t r
aise either one of them.”
“Well, don’t worry yet. There are some parts of this drive where there’s no cell coverage, you know.”
“Any of that left between you and Hanksville?”
“Yeah, it’s going to be a little spotty.”
“Well, maybe that’s the problem,” Frank said. “I hope so.”
“You’re stopping in Hanksville?”
“Yeah. Some of us need to get fuel.”
“Good little town. There’s a big truck stop there that caters to RVs, and they have a good diner too. Been there many times on my way to Colorado. They have propane and a dump station, too.”
“That’s probably where we’ll end up. Jerry’s got a pusher, so he’s going to need diesel.”
“Yeah, Charlie too.”
“Well, we are almost on top of the town now,” Frank said. “I’d better get off.”
“Okay, see you later, Frank.”
Frank put his phone back in his pocket.
“He hasn’t seen them,” Frank said to Jane.
“I was afraid of that.”
“Did you notice any spots where you lost cell coverage between Boulder and here?”
“No, but I wasn’t on my phone for some long stretches…especially back in there where all the pretty rock formations were. And I slept for a while too, remember?”
“Oh, yeah,” Frank said. “The Sheriff said there were a few places that had no coverage. If that’s all this is, we’ll be able to contact them eventually.”
“There’s the off-ramp. Look at that big truck stop.”
“Yep, the Sheriff said there was a good one here.”
Frank put on his turn signal a little early, to make sure that the rigs behind him got the idea. He slowed, and got ready to get on the off ramp. Lucy got out of bed and started to get excited.
“She really needs to go,” Jane said.
“Not surprised, it’s been a while now. She’s been good.”
“Yes, she has,” Jane said.
The rig went down the ramp, and stopped at the light. Jerry was up ahead of him, his right turn blinker on. He made his turn, and pulled into the truck stop. Frank followed him in, and went over the gas RV lane, which was a few lanes over from where Jerry pulled in.
Frank got out of his seat and stretched, pushing on his lower back with his hand.
Jane opened the door and got out with Lucy. They made a bee-line for a grass section, watching out for other rigs coming in. Looks like the whole group has stopped, she thought to herself. There were RVs that she recognized all over the place. Some were just parked on the side, but many were pulled up next to a fuel pump. After he got the gas flowing into his rig, Frank walked over to where Jerry’s rig was. He was already talking to Charlie and Jeb.
“Hear anything from Earl or Jackson?” Frank asked.
“Not yet,” Jerry said. “But I’ll try them again in a few minutes.”
“I just talked to the Sheriff,” Frank said. “He’s past the switchbacks.”
“Good, that old codger got out of dodge too,” Jeb said. “He on his way to us?”
“Yep, he got his rig on the road. Things weren’t good in town. They got overrun.”
“Does he know what happened at the park?” Charlie asked.
“No, he didn’t get back there, but he said that he could hear artillery and small arms fire coming from that direction.”
“What happened in town?” Jeb asked.
“They hit the place full force. Knocked out the Hospital, too,” Frank said.
“Oh no,” Charlie said. “How about the Doc?”
“He didn’t know if the Doc made it out alive or not. He said some of the rednecks where still sniping at the enemy when he got out, but he didn’t think they were going to be able to do much with a force of that size.”
“Damn,” Jeb said.
“So what should we do if we can’t raise Earl or Jackson?” Charlie asked.
“We go back for them, of course,” Jeb said.
“I agree,” Jerry said.
“Me too,” Frank said. “But we probably should get our rigs settled somewhere, and then go back there in our toads.”
“If you want to make a stop before Colorado, I know a park in Green River that’s nice,” Charlie said. “I know the owner.”
“Kurt?” Jeb asked.
“Yep,” Charlie said, grinning.
“Is it safe there?” Jerry asked.
“I think so. It’s pretty flat there. It doesn’t have a lot of cover like Hilda’s place, but you can see people coming from a long way off.”
“Well, it looks pretty good here, and that’s even further north and east,” Jerry said. “And we’re all tired. Maybe we ought to take the chance.”
“Yeah, I agree with that,” Frank said.
“Maybe we ought to let Charlie lead us in there, then,” Jeb said.
“Be glad to,” Charlie said.
“Okay, let’s spread the word to the rest of the group,” Frank said.
The men looked at each other and nodded. Jasmine walked over with Hilda and Jane. Lucy bounded along behind Jane, enjoying the fresh air and the space.
“What’s up, boys?” Hilda asked
“Charlie suggested that we stop at a place he knows about in Green River.”
“Oh, that’s a great idea,” Hilda said. “That’s Kurt’s place. We go way back.”
Jane looked at Frank.
“Safe?” she asked.
“Sounds like it, sweetie.”
“Good, it’s been a long day,” Jane said. “I saw that town on the map. It’s up where Route 24 hits I-70.”
“Yeah, that’s right,” Charlie said. “We’ve got to go that way to get to Colorado anyway.”
“How much further is it?” Jasmine asked.
“It’s about two hours away,” Charlie said. “Maybe less if we haul ass.”
“Well, then I say we get back on the road,” Jeb said. “We’re burning daylight.”
“My rig ought to be full by now,” Charlie said. “I’ll go get her ready to lead.”
The rest of the group had gathered by now, and were listening. Frank noticed, and turned towards them.
“Everybody, we are going to spend the night in Green River. It’s a couple of hour’s away, right up by I-70.”
“We’re with you,” said one man. The others murmured and nodded.
“Everybody fueled up that needs to be?” asked Jeb.
There were people nodding and saying yes.
“Good, then let’s blow this joint,” Jeb said.
They dispersed to their rigs. Soon they were back on route 24, following Charlie.
Jane was in the driver’s seat now.
“It always takes me a few minutes to get used to driving this monster,” she said. “But then it’s almost relaxing.”
“Well, you remember that line from the movie “Speed” – ‘It’s like driving a really big Pinto’.”
“That’s one way to put it,” Jane said, cracking up.
Frank’s phone rang. He pulled it out and looked at the screen.
“It’s Jerry,” Frank said. He answered it.
“Jerry, hear anything?”
“No, still can’t raise them.”
“Shoot.”
“I’ve tried a lot of times now, though. Nothing.”
Frank’s phone buzzed.
“Another call coming in, Jerry. It’s the Sheriff.”
“Good, take it. Call me back.” He hung up.
“Sheriff?”
“Yeah, Frank. I’ve got Earl and Jackson. They’re a little messed up.”
“What happened?”
“Earl’s coach was sitting on its side. The tires and most of one side were all shot up. There were three other vehicles crashed nearby. Dead Islamists.”
“Do Earl and Jackson need medical attention?”
“Probably. They’re both conscious. I think Earl has a concussion. Jackson’s got a pretty big gash on
his right calf, but he can walk. He really needs stitches, but at least I was able to clean out the wound and bandage it up with my first aid kit.”
“Salvage anything from their rig?”
“Guns and ammo, grenades, clothes, some food, other odds and ends,” the Sheriff said. My nephew was a big help. I don’t think I could have climbed in and out of that thing.”
“Good. I’m so glad they survived.”
“Where you guys going?”
“We’re going to stop at an RV Park in Green River for the night. Charlie and Hilda know the owner.”
“Good. I know that place. I’m about three hours away.”
“Take care of yourself. Sounds like the road down there’s pretty dangerous.”
“I’ve got Terry in the back, watching out the rear window with one of the M-16s and some grenades. If anybody follows us, they’re going to have a real bad day.”
“I’d put Jackson in front with a gun too.”
“Good idea. I’ll talk to you later, Frank.”
“Thanks for letting me know, Sheriff.”
“Don’t mention it. See you soon.”
Frank shut off the call and looked over at Jane.
“I got it, Frank. Thank God they’re okay. Call Jerry.”
Frank dialed Jerry’s number.
“Frank?”
“Yeah, what’s up?”
“The Sheriff has Earl and Jackson in his rig. They are both alive, but a little worse for wear.
“Uh oh. What happened?”
“They ran into some action on the road. They won, but their rig is laying on its side, and they both need a little medical attention.”
“Islamists?”
“Yep, there were a few dead cretons scattered around the scene. The Sheriff said there were three vehicles.”
“Scumbags,” Jerry said. “Thanks for letting me know.”
“I’m not driving right now, so I’ll call Charlie and Jeb.”
“Great, thanks.” Jerry got off the line.
Frank looked over at Jane. His eyes were starting to tear up.
“They’re alright, Frank,” Jane said. “That’s all that matters.”
Frank wiped his eyes and dialed Charlie, accounting the news.
“Shit,” Charlie said. “Kurt’s married to the town doctor…we can get them checked out when they get to camp, hopefully.”
“Excellent,” Frank said. “I’ll call Jeb.”
“You do that. I’ll talk to you later. Thanks for letting me know.”